Behind the Veil
by ElusiveSanity
Summary: When Emma and Regina stop the trigger, it unintentionally sends Emma to an alternate dimension alone. Shunned by the town and isolated in a realm of darkness, the former queen and the Savior discover a connection that might just be Emma's last hope: the tether that binds their magic together. 2x22 divergent. Slow-burn SwanQueen. Stranger Things feel, but not related.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This crazy little idea came to me out of nowhere and I had to write it. It's 2x22 divergent, so no Neverland, no Zelena, and hell maybe not even Hook. We'll see where the characters take me, but by nature of this story, we'll be dealing with Regina and Emma the majority of the time. It's going to be a slow, painful burn... but it's rated M because of the darkness of the tone of this story (ooo angsty) and not necessarily for explicit future sexy times (let's just say I keep mine somewhere in the gray area between pg13 and R- but they'll be there eventually, because what is SwanQueen without them?)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own it, wish I did, please don't sue me. I'm a broke teacher. I've got nothing to give you except this half chewed pencil and an eraser I found on the floor.**

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" _You may not be strong enough, but maybe we are."_

It should have been the obvious solution, but as soon as Emma said it, Regina felt a pang of surprise. It wasn't that she was unaware of the power the savior possessed. It was that for so long she had fought on her own, against the savior even, that she wasn't prepared for the offer. She should have been. Emma had come to her rescue several times in the past year. But though intellectually she knew perhaps they shouldn't quite be enemies anymore, her heart, cold and lonely for so long, hadn't caught up.

Henry stepped away as Emma timidly approached. They made eye contact for a brief moment, understanding together this was their last chance. Emma placed her hands over the swirling stone and almost instantly Regina felt the intense power. Gradually, the drain on her own magic lessened, and she looked back at the savior in hesitant wonder. The blonde met her gaze, scared and confused, and Regina attempted to smile as reassuringly as she could.

It was working.

The trigger's energy pulled back as if suctioned from the inside, and it happened too quickly for Regina to prepare them. The sudden tidal wave of magic felt like a kick to her chest and she was flying backwards. She landed hard in the dirt and gravel of the old mine floor and felt her breath escape her.

She struggled to get air into her lungs, her own body fighting against her. Panic started to set in, as she felt herself suffocating.

"Mom!"

And suddenly air was filling her chest and relief flooded her veins. They were alive, Henry was safe, and he was calling for her.

The former queen sat up slowly, taking stock of her sore body. She hurt, yes, but she wasn't broken.

"Mom!"

"Henry?"

Regina stood up and stumbled over towards the group standing on the opposite side. She dropped to her knees in front of her son and pulled him into a tight hug.

"Henry, are you all right? It worked! The trigger- "

Her words were cut off by Henry forcefully pushing himself out of her embrace.

"Where's my mom?" he demanded.

"What?" she asked, confused. She looked at Snow and David behind him and saw their matching pained expressions.

"My mom!" Henry shouted at her. "She's gone!"

"Emma?" Regina's first reaction was hurt that her own son was pushing her away and referring to the blonde as _mom_. But she quickly realized the blonde _wasn't even there_.

Regina blinked and looked around them, confusion rapidly setting in. She stood and peered around the empty cave. "Emma!" she shouted, her voice sounding strained and borderline panicked.

"Regina," Snow nearly whispered.

The mayor whirled around, her hands raising to thread through her hair. This was wrong. Very wrong.

"Regina, where's my daughter?"

"I don't know, Snow!" Regina's shout echoed through the mine. She picked up the trigger and gazed at the dark gem in consternation.

"We stopped it. It… it should have… I don't understand!"

"She's dead, isn't she?"

Regina slowly turned, her eyes meeting the heartbroken gaze of her son.

"Henry, I don't-"

"She's dead!" he shouted at her, tears streaming down his soft cheeks. "The trigger took her! You killed her!"

"Henry," David soothed as he picked up the sobbing child. Regina watched helplessly as her son wrapped his arms around his grandfather's neck. Snow placed a comforting hand on Henry's back, her own tears trailing down her face.

"I'll find her, Henry," Regina promised, her voice strained with the struggle of holding back her own tears. "I'll find her, if it's the last thing I do."

"I want to go home," Henry whimpered, his arms tightening around David's neck.

And it was then that Regina realized she had been wrong all along. She still had a heart, and it had never truly been broken.

Until now.

With one last long glance towards Regina, the Charming's turned and carried her son, _her son_ , out of the mine and away from her. Why was everyone always taking her son away? Why was he always so willing to go?

The moment they disappeared out of sight Regina's knees lost the strength to hold her. She tumbled to the ground, unaware that as her heart was shattering, her wailing sobs were echoing through Storybrooke.

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Time passed and it could have been minutes, maybe even hours, before Regina became self-aware enough to realize she was still kneeling in the dark mine alone.

Wait… definitely _not_ alone, she realized in shock.

Quickly wiping her eyes with her coat sleeve, she gazed into the darkness. A flashlight appeared in her hand, and she shined the light around the cavern, looking for what she could _feel_ was there. She didn't see anything, so she walked a little farther into the mine.

No, not there. The feeling she had dissipated the farther she walked.

She turned around and walked back to where she started. Setting the flashlight on the ground, she held her hands up, attempting to feel the surrounding air for traces of magic.

There, on the ground against the wall. It got stronger the closer she got to it, and as she knelt down to the floor, her own magic buzzed in excitement.

This was Emma Swan's magic. But why was it so concentrated? The environment would often absorb leftover magic, allowing magical beings to feel the trace long after the event. But this was more than an imprint leftover from deactivating the trigger. This was as strong as if Emma herself was actually there.

Regina found herself feeling on the ground and walls. She wasn't sure what she expected to find, perhaps an invisible Emma? But her hands found nothing but dirt and rocks. Changing tactics, she sent a surge of her own magic towards the area, and was surprised to receive a rebounding magical shock.

Shaking out her stinging hands, Regina slowly backed away until she stood against the stone wall. Feeling suddenly exhausted and depleted, she slid down to the ground, staring at the spot that somehow held Emma, but didn't.

Emma was alive. Emma was _there_. She wasn't sure how she knew, but she could feel it without a doubt.

But what it all meant, she had no idea.

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Emma gasped as she woke with a literal jolt.

"Jesus, Regina. Was that really necessary?"

She sat up with a grumpy groan, rubbing her arms against the frigid cold.

"Did it work? Did we do it?" she asked, her eyes attempting to adjust to the darkness.

She didn't get a response, but the eerie silence, cold, and darkness settled into her conscious awareness.

"Mom? Dad?" she called out, but not even an echo of her own voice responded. Starting to panic, she stood up and attempted to make out any shapes in the blackness.

"Henry? Kid, where are you?"

Silence. Emma took a few slow steps and heard the crunching of gravel under her feet. She was still in the mine, she thought. But it was so dark and cold. How long had she been there? And where were the others? Had they left her behind?

No, she thought to herself. Her parents wouldn't have left her there alone. So, where were they?

The thought entered her mind that perhaps they had failed. Maybe it didn't work, and the trigger destroyed everything. The only problem with that theory was that she was pretty damn sure she was still alive.

She tried to remember what happened. The magic was flowing from her body through her hands as if it had a mind of its own. It had scared her, but she didn't dare stop. There had been a blast of magic, and then she woke up to what she could have sworn was Regina shocking her with a pulse of magic.

"Regina!" Emma hollered into the darkness. She listened with everything she had, but still the only thing she heard was the sound of her own labored breathing.

The mayor was here, she was sure of it. She knew the feel of the brunette's magic. She felt it combine with her own as they deactivated the trigger. It had been the same warm, tingly electric feeling she felt when she touched Regina's arm and made Jefferson's hat work. Just the thought that she had Regina with her made Emma calm ever so slightly. Though they weren't exactly on the friendliest terms, she was certain the woman would help her figure out what the hell was going on. Or, at the very least, help her to not die.

"Regina!"

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* * *

At the mouth of the mine, Regina froze mid-step. Her eyes closed as she listened to the air around her. She took a slow, deep breath, letting the energy around her fill her lungs. As she exhaled, a single whispered word floated out with the wind.

"Emma."


	2. Chapter 2

**_Hello everyone. I'm sorry it has taken me so long to update, I never intended to post and disappear. I wanted to talk a bit about the plot of this little story… When I started writing this, I had never actually seen "Stranger Things". After binge watching both seasons, I realized just how similar a story I was trying to weave. I thought about pulling it off and abandoning it, but instead I decided to continue. I will embrace the similarities, and if you're a ST fan, you could even consider it a sort of crossover if you so desire. However, it's not meant to be that. The idea of "the veil" has existed for centuries, and something I've studied quite a bit during my time dealing with the paranormal (yes, I'm weird, I know.) Rather than monsters from nightmares and tv shows, the evil in this story will resemble that which your Sunday school teachers taught you to fear._**

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Emma tried not to think much as she walked back to town. She focused on the sound her rhythmic footsteps made on the asphalt. She definitely was _not_ thinking about how they didn't echo through the trees. She wasn't thinking about how utterly cold it was, or how the clouds were so thick she couldn't even see the moon, let alone any stars. She refused to wonder why she thought she could hear someone following her, but every time she stopped, they stopped too. There was never anybody there.

When she had finally walked out of the mine, the first thing she noticed was her car was missing. So that explained that, she thought. Though why her family had left her behind, she had no idea. The mayor's car had still been there, but the woman was nowhere to be found either. Emma's only explanation was that she had left with her parents, or perhaps even magically teleported herself away. Either way, Regina had locked her car, and Emma wasn't about to incite her wrath by breaking a window to hot wire it.

So that's why she had been walking through the dark for 45 minutes now. With no light from the moon, it was almost too dark to see. But she could tell the road curved up ahead, and she anticipated seeing the old brick buildings of the town just around the bend.

She was right, of course, and Emma sped up her steps as the post office finally came into view. Her feet were sore and she was chilled to the bone, but the sight of civilization gave her a shot of energy. If anything, she'd be able to call someone to give her a ride home and find out why the hell everyone had just left her back in the mines alone.

As she approached the post office it became clear that the building was closed. The lights were off, but she peered in through the windows anyway. Knocking a few times on the door, she waited to see if she could see anyone move inside, but it was obviously empty. Releasing a sigh, she pulled out her cell phone and tapped uselessly at the black screen. It had been fully charged this morning, but something had completely drained the battery. Emma assumed it had something to do with magical energies, but it didn't really matter at this point.

She gazed down the street debating where she would try next, but the entire block was pitch black and silent. It was the lack of noise that disturbed her the most. Even with no power, there should still be the sounds of civilization. Cars driving, people talking, babies crying, dogs barking… but there was nothing.

"Hello?" she called out loudly, and immediately felt stupid doing so. It didn't matter anyway. Nobody answered her back.

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Regina thought briefly of unlocking the door with magic, but thought better of it and chose to knock instead. She managed to wait a whole five seconds before knocking a second time a little more insistently. She was winding up for a third time when the door final opened.

"I can't imagine there's another town crisis already, your majesty," Mr. Gold said. "But in case you've forgotten, I'm dealing with my own personal tragedy, so I'm going to have to ask that you excuse me." He shut the door without further ado, but was blocked by the mayor's hand.

"I need you to tell me I'm not crazy," Regina blurted out.

"Is that all?" Gold asked, a mixture of amusement and irritation on his face. "Well, I'm sorry dearie, I can't do that."

With an impatient wave of her hand, the door swung open and the former queen pushed her way into the shop. "I'm not playing games, Rumple. I need your help."

"I'm not in a helping mood, Regina," the dark one grumbled as he closed and locked the door behind her.

Regina wandered up to the counter and leaned against it. She tapped her fingers against the glass as she counted to ten.

"I'm sorry about Baelfire. Truly, I am," Regina turned, her eyes understanding, yet pleading. "But unless you want your grandson to lose both of his biological parents today, I need you to help me."

The old man slowly limped around the counter; the staccato of his cane on the hardwood floor echoed through the shop with each step. "So, the savior is in trouble, and you want me to help you… to help her?" he asked, an arrogant smirk on his lips.

"Yes! I…"

"Need me to tell you that you're not crazy," the imp finished for her.

Regina glared at him as she leaned across the counter. "Emma disappeared. We stopped the trigger, but something happened. And now she's gone, and I need to find her."

"That sounds like…" he lifted a finger as he pretended to contemplate something far in the distance. "A personal problem," he finished with an unkind smile.

"Rumple," Regina growled through clenched teeth. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. When her eyes opened again they shone with unshed tears. If the dark one was surprised, he didn't show it. "You of all people know what it's like to have a son hate you. To have a son that wants nothing to do with you. I need to find Emma. Henry thinks…," she paused, finding it difficult to swallow past the lump in her throat. "He thinks I killed his mother. He blames me for… whatever happened. I need to get my son back, Rumple. He's my everything. Please," she begged softly. She was aware that she was throwing any dignity she may have walked in with out the window, but she didn't care. She was desperate.

Gold stared at her passively, seemingly weighing his options. The longer they gazed at each other in silence, the more nervous Regina felt. She knew he would help her, she was certain of it. It was what it would cost her that had her stomach in knots, though she would undoubtedly pay it without a second thought.

"The trigger was designed to destroy everything," Gold stated the obvious. He tapped his cane on the floor once and shook his head hopelessly. "All magic comes with a price; you know this as well as I. Don't you agree it's most likely that it was our dear savior who paid the price?"

"She's not dead!" Regina shouted, though Gold didn't flinch, used to her Majesty's outbursts as he was. Regina spun on her heels and stomped to the center of the room, her hands weaving through her hair in frustration. "I know it sounds crazy but I can _feel_ her, Rumple! I felt her in the mine. It wasn't just residual magic, I could feel her _life force_." She huffed and displayed her hands in front of her. "My magic reacted to her magic," she admitted, her fingers flexing in memory.

"Well, that certainly is interesting," Gold muttered, genuinely intrigued. "The dead can't wield magic. But magic can't transcend realms either."

"So what in the hell is happening?" Regina actually whined, her voice tight and afraid.

Gold shook his head slowly. "There's only one possibility I can think of, but there's not much I can tell you."

"Well try," Regina snapped impatiently.

"You're familiar with this world's ideas about the afterlife, are you not?"

"Of course," Regina answered, her eyebrows furrowed in thought. "Emma's not dead though," she repeated with a huff.

Gold ignored her and waved his hand over the counter. An old book appeared under his hands, bound in tattered black leather. "The concept of crossing over," he continued, "refers to the soul's passage to the afterlife after leaving the physical body." He reverently opened the book and turned a few pages. "It implies that there is some sort of final destination, if you will. Heaven, Hell, Purgatory… each religion has its own names. But the soul must choose to cross over. Otherwise, it stays earth bound."

"So like… a ghost?" Region asked skeptically.

"Precisely."

The mayor shook her head. "I don't see where you're going with this."

Gold seemed to find the page he was looking for, and stared down at it solemnly. "The spirits who stay behind, the ghosts as you call them, you can't see them even though they occupy the same physical space." He looked up to see skeptical eyes gazing back at him and sighed. "The people of this realm refer to the blindness as 'the veil'. Few people have the ability to see beyond it. The existence of a parallel dimension that exists simultaneously in the same physical space is, to most, a fantasy. Much like magic."

"But you're standing here telling me it's all real."

The dark one simply spun the book around on the counter to face the former queen. Regina raised an eyebrow, but sighed and pulled the book closer for inspection. The ancient images, hand drawn in black ink, were surprisingly detailed. They were accompanied by words in a language Regina didn't recognize, but one didn't need to be able to read to figure out they spoke of nothing good. The creatures depicted stood on two legs, but had long talons at the end of bony fingers, and their empty eyes, though drawn in scratch-like style, still managed to send a chill down her spine. She turned the page, only to be met with more pictures and illegible words. This time though, the pictures were rune-like symbols and what looked suspiciously like a dagger dripping with blood. Because of course the inky colored liquid would only be blood, Regina thought to herself.

"I can't read this nonsense," Regina said, her voice sounding tired as she closed the book harder than necessary. "If this realm, or 'dimension' whatever you called it is where Emma is… then how did she get there? And how do we get her back?"

"That, your majesty, is a fantastic question."

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XXX tbc XXX


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